LECCE – Crowd in Piazza Sant’Oronzo for the two candidates for mayor of Lecce. Today the electoral silence began, but yesterday was still a day of sparks and distant back and forth between Carlo Salvemini, candidate of the centre-left, and Adriana Poli Bortone, candidate of the centre-right. Salvemini wanted the mayor of Bari and new MEP Antonio Decaro next to him in the final rally and one of the issues on which the button was pressed concerned differentiated autonomy, agitated as a bogeyman for the South and an additional reason not to vote for the centre-right.
Via social media Salvemini incited the vote: «The Lecce we want is not biased, nor arrogant or overbearing. Because it is our duty to set a good example, because it is our duty to embrace plurality and respect each other in our differences.” And Poli Bortone did not miss the opportunity to underline the harshness of the clash: «We faced many low blows, torn posters and more, acts which I prefer not to talk about. These are evils that we have overcome, that I have overcome, thanks to the embrace of all of you.”
Yesterday was also a tense day, which saw Salvemini and Alfredo Pagliaro, the sole director of Lupiae Servizi, of which the Municipality is the sole shareholder, pitted against each other. The outgoing mayor criticized Pagliaro’s request to receive a performance bonus equal to 5% of the profits of the company, which is being rescued after the composition with creditors and the candidacy of the director’s son on the Poli Bortone lists. Salvemini also countered the centre-right on parking (Poli Bortone promised 5 thousand, the mayor claimed to have planned 3 thousand and reiterated that those of his opponent are only blue lines), Tari (decreasing for Salvemini, increasing for Poli Bortone ) and yesterday on the Municipality’s in-house company.
What is certain is that in these two weeks, between the first round which ended with Poli Bortone ahead with 49.95% against Salvemini’s 46.73%, the two have not spoken to each other. The senator also alleged illicit behavior on the part of the administrators and Salvemini said he was immediately ready to accompany her to the prosecutor’s office to deposit any “hot” documents that she may have. At the end of the electoral campaign the “moral question” took on a central role. Poli Bortone overshadowed alleged favoritism on the part of his opponent, Salvemini reminded the centre-right of Paolo Perrone’s speech, upon his inauguration at Palazzo Carafa, in 2012, when he attributed the serious financial situation of the body to the legacy left by the senator on municipal ordinary vouchers, via Brenta, Lupiae services.
